Part One: Using Social Media to Promote Your Show, Getting Started & Twitter

Social networking platforms are a great way to promote your online talk show on BlogTalkRadio. Using tools like Twitter, Facebook, Cinch, and MySpace, you can cross-promote your content and gain more followers, friends, and ultimately, listeners. In essence, the more people online who feel connected to you and your interests, and the easier you make it for them to stay connected and keep up with you, the more likely they are to check out your BlogTalkRadio show. Keep your friends and fans engaged and entertained, and you can be confident that your listeners will increase.

Here is the first in a series of posts on how to maximize these site’s offerings and expand your listener base online.

Here are a few basic tips to get you started:

Build Killer Profiles: Your profiles are what define you as you interact within the different social networks. Make sure yours is one that helps people find you and inspires them to connect. A keyword-rich description and good picture are a great place to start.

Cross-Link Your Profiles: When you are setting up new profiles on sites, make sure to cross-link them. For example, on your BlogTalkRadio profile link to your Facebook, Twitter and other profiles, and vice versa. This helps you build friends and followers across the different sites where you participate.

Promote Your Profiles: A simple way to get started promoting your profiles and your show is to include logos and links to them on your website and in your email signature.

In the weeks to come, we will cover tips for using Cinch, Facebook, and MySpace.

This week, here are some tips for using Twitter to promote your show:

Twitter offers a very short and sweet way to get your message out there, and using less than 140 characters and a link can get new listeners to your show fast. Once you have created an account (it’s a good idea to use your show’s name as your Twitter handle), be sure to follow your fellow BlogTalkRadio hosts, current listeners, and real life friends. From there, you can start searching for people with similar interests who would be intrigued by your show’s content, add them and then add their friends and followers. Often times they will follow you right back.

Another technique for building your network on Twitter is to use Twitter Search, or keyword search in TweetDeck to scan tweets for related content, and start conversations with new people. It is also a good idea to announce your Twitter handle during your show. You can connect your BlogTalkRadio account to automatically post to Twitter, which automatically publishes show promotion tweets when you are going on air. Here is a link to a screencast on how to do this. When it comes to content, don’t just tweet self-promotional messages, try to offer value to your followers by conversing with them, offering news and opinions that are interesting, useful, funny, or unusual.

Here are a few links to other articles that you may find helpful on Twitter:
http://www.twitip.com/13-twitter-tips-and-tutorials-for-beginners/
http://twittercism.com/10-easy-ways-to-maximise-your-twitter-experience/

4 thoughts on “Part One: Using Social Media to Promote Your Show, Getting Started & Twitter”

One thing I’d like to see covered…or I’ll just insert here…is social media etiquette.

Facebook and Twitter have been huge in helping many of us promote our shows and also connect with fans/friends/etc. But, all too often we have seen the host who is maybe a little over zealous and it becomes more of a distraction and an annoyance. And like they say, “If you don’t like what you hear then turn the channel” and unfortunately the onslaught of “promotion” turned me off and I simply stopped listening in.

I guess my advice could be simply stated as “everything in moderation”. I want to know what is happening with my favorite shows and hosts, but I don’t want to be overwhelmed by it.